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Adding insult to injury, the U.S. Coast Guard has launched a criminal investigation of regulatory violations onboard the Noble Discoverer.

Since acquiring leases to drilling in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas from the federal government six years ago, Shell has spent $5 billion on research, permits, equipment and personnel.

The Kulluk drillship ran aground in heavy seas on Dec. 31 near Kodiak Island. Before being dislodged it suffered flooding and damage to its generators.

Asked about the status of its Arctic drilling program, Shell spokesman Curtis Smith said this in an email Monday night:

“The pace of our Alaska operations will always be dictated by safety. The lessons learned from 2012 will be applied to all future exploration programs. Having said that, the drilling program we executed in 2012 was safe and successful. We look forward to building on that progress in the future.”

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